The Avatar's Phantom
by Gigglingskull
Summary: When Aang meets Roku in the Fire Temple, the past Avatar gave him a mysterious box. What is inside it? Why does Aang feel so connected to it? And why is there a "DP" symbol on the box? Watch as an new player is added to the mix and what changes this causes. (Rated M because I MIGHT put mature stuff in the story, but not TOO much.)
1. The Box

Author Notes: I know, I know. "Another crossover?," you say. "Don't you already have enough on your plate and FIVE stories you could be working on instead of starting ANOTHER new story?" You would be correct and that isn't counting the 4 unpublished rough drafts I have of different stories. But this idea wouldn't leave me alone. I love the end music of each episode of The Last Airbender. I always drum along with the drums. . .. or at least I think they are drums. . . . It is silly, but fun. I'm going to say this now. This story wasn't inspired by Avatar the Last Airbender, but actually by The Legend of Korra. The idea I have is mostly focused in that time line, but to do it properly, I need to have the background of the first story involved. I'm not explaining very well, but I don't want to give anything away. I will admit, at first I was hesitant to watch the Korra series, but when I did . . . I LOVED it. I think I like her more than Aang. That doesn't mean I don't like Aang. Hell, I think my favorite Avatar is Kyoshi. She is just so cool. Anyways . . . expect this story to run long and EVENTUALLY connect between the two series. But that won't happen for a LONG time. Also this starts around the episode Winter Solstice, Part 2: Avatar Roku. Another thing. Thanks to all those who replied to my message and helped me with an issue I was having with this story.

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The Avatar's Phantom Chapter 1: The Box

High up in the snowy mountaintops of the lands once call home to the Air Nomads, nearest to the Fire Nation, flew a heavily wounded and bleeding white dragon. Her body was long and serpentine like that of the common breed of dragon in the world. There were other body types, but they were rarer to see.

A long while ago, she had been red in coloration. That was back when she lived in the land of fire with her mate. He was black in color and was unique in that his body wasn't the typical dragon shape. His wings were attached to his front legs. He was stockier and heavily muscled. His body was covered in spikes and his tail ended in a vicious bone blade. While typical dragons were elegant, he was brutish looking.

But once the humans who could bend fire started hunting dragons for sport, the mates knew they would have to leave for their protection and that of the egg the female was carrying inside her body.

Before they could both escape the land of fire, a group of fire benders surrounded the pair. Tanin (the male) looked back at his beloved Mangkr (the female) with pain and sadness in his eyes. He knew that these hunters wouldn't leave them alone until he, his mate, and the unborn offspring were killed and mounted as trophies. So deciding to act quickly, the male dragon flared his wings, roared at humans and attacked with a large fire blast. While getting the hunters' attentions solely focused on him, Tanin shout "GET OUT OF HERE MANGKR." He then quickly swiped his tail across the ground, creating an opening for her to take.

Knowing that he was going to sacrifice himself for her and their egg, Mangkr didn't question him. She wanted to stay, fight, yell at him, or anything besides just leaving . . . . . but the male had already set things into motion and Mangkr didn't want his sacrifice to be in vain. "I love you," she sadly whispered before spreading her wings and taking off, knowing that their child would never get to see him. She never looked back. Not even when she heard Tanin's terrifying screech of pain, signifying the end of his life.

With tears in her eyes, the pregnant dragon continued on to safety.

After traveling for a long time, Mangkr eventually found a cave that she was sure that she could lay her egg and raise the child in safety. The cave was located high in the snowy mountains. The cold snowy environment and the sadness of loosing her mate caused her red color to slowly change to white over time. If it wasn't for her blue eyes, she would have looked like an albino.

Though that safety lasted for several months, long enough for Mangkr to lay her egg, the peace was about to come to a violent end.

Earlier in the day, Mangkr had left her egg to search for food. It had been so long since she had something to eat. Usually while one dragon sat on and protected the egg, their mate would go out and get them food. But since Mangkr's mate was gone, she left to fend for herself. Heating a bunch of rocks with her fire to keep her egg warm, the dragon exited the cave since if she starved and died, then the egg's life would end along side her's.

Mangkr was just about to take down a fox antelope, when she was attacked by a group of fire benders. They were able to greatly wound Mangkr with their fire and bladed weapons before the dragon was able to make her escape. So heavily wounded, she could barely fly back and drag herself into her nest. Using the last of her strength, Mangkr curled her long body around her egg, determined to protect it, the last surviving piece of Tanin she had. The egg was a symbol of their love and she would protect it until her last breath.

"Time Out."

Everything froze as Mangkr felt something placed around her long neck. Slowly and painfully looking downward, she saw that a gear shaped medallion with a "CW" had been placed around her neck. How it was place there and without her knowledge . . . Mangkr had no idea and that fact scared her.

Looking up when she felt a strong presence, the dragon saw a very powerful spirit standing a respectful distance away from her. He look like a man in the prime of his life. . . . though the tail instead of legs and the floating in air definitely proved he wasn't human. His skin was blue and he was wearing a purple cloak. The ghost was holding a staff with a clock on the end of it. She didn't try to attack because she could sense how powerful this spirit was and how pointless it would have been. And that wasn't counting the condition her body was in. Even if she wasn't greatly wounded, Mangkr would never have been able to take this spirit in a fight.

"I am Clockwork, ghostly master of time." As if to emphasize this point, his form changed into that of a young child as if time had been reversed on him. "And I am here concerning an important matter." His tone was neutral, but held an unspoken strength to it.

"I . ." Mangkr coughed up a small bit of blood. "I am in no shape or condition to help anyone." " _Not even my own egg._ " Sadly, the dragon knew that she and her egg were most likely going to die today. " _At least we will be together with Tanin in the afterlife._ " She closed her eyes at that sad yet slightly comforting thought.

"I have come to save your egg."

That caused the dragon's eyes to shoot open and to look at the ghost with hope shinning in her eyes.

"Though regrettably, that doesn't include you." As if to show how much this weighed on his soul, Clockwork changed into a hunched over old man with a long white beard. "Saving you would effect the time-line too strongly. You are going to die when I leave and unpause time." His tone was flat and his face neutral as he delivered this devastating news. Normally, he wouldn't tell anyone of their time of death, but he felt she at least deserved to know. Plus he knew it would help her to make the tough decision he was giving her. A sad smile came to his neutral face. "But I can assure you that your egg will grow up to be a strong and healthy dragon. I can even show you." Before she could reply, since the ghost already knew what she would say, Clockwork moved forward and gently tapped Mangkr's forehead with his staff.

Flashes and glimpses of the future passed through the dragon's mind. Mangkr smiled at the image of her child all grown up and the one who would be with her hatching. "That child will take care of my baby." It wasn't a question. She had seen it in her visions.

"Yes he will," Clockwork stated. "That child will be in the same boat and in need of someone to always be there for them." A small sad look came to the ghost's face. "Bringing these two together is all I can do for them. . . . I wish there was more I could do for them to ease the pain that will be in their hearts."

Mangkr nodded her head. The dragon knew Clockwork was talking more about the child who would receive her egg. " _What that child will go through in his life . . ._ " She shook her head in sadness. " _He deserves something to give him some happiness._ " Uncurling, the dragon looked at her egg. " _If giving this spirit my egg will ease some of that child's pain and save my offspring . . . Then I will do it._ " Moving her tail, Mangkr gently picked up her egg and held it out towards Clockwork.

"You will not regret this," the ghost of time said as he carefully took the egg from the dragon. He held it like the precious thing it was. "I promise you that."

"I better not!," growled the dragon with a threatening glimpse of her deadly teeth, even though Mangkr already knew that she wouldn't.

Clockwork wasn't fazed at all by her unspoken threat, knowing that it was coming beforehand and that there was not risk to himself. Knowing everything that would or could happen did have its advantages. He also knew the true reason behind the threat. Deep down beneath her brave front, the dragon was scared and upset. She would never get to see her baby grow up in person and knew that her death was soon to happen.

"I must go now," Clockwork regrettably said as his body change into his young man form. He then gently petted the side of Mangkr's head and the dragon leaned into his hand. Even though she hadn't know the spirit, he had already earned himself a special place in her heart. After all, he was saving her child when she couldn't do it herself. That meant a lot to the mother.

After a long moment, the ghost backed away. Clockwork was holding the egg gently to his chest. Raising his staff with his free hand, he tapped the bottom against the ground.

"Time In."

Mangkr felt the medallion around her neck disappear as time unfroze. She laid her head down, since she knew what was about to happen and there was nothing she could do to change her fate. The only consoling fact was that her egg would survive and grow up. " _She will grow up into a beautiful and strong dragon._ " That thought caused a smile to come to her face as she closed her eyes. She wouldn't be opening them again.

Mangkr didn't move an inch or even open her eyes when she hear the footsteps of several humans quickly enter her cave. She knew it was the group of fire benders who had attacked her before. They were here to finish the job they started. Even when they circled her, with flames and weapons pointed at the dragon, Mangkr didn't stir. They didn't hesitate before throwing their fire at the downed dragon.

As the flames head towards her body, the dragon was content with her death since her baby was safe. A tear ran down her cheek as the flames engulfed her body. Her last thought among the living was " _I hope Danny and Luna are happy together._ "

==================About 50 Years Later at Crescent Island, Fire Nation==================

Roku had just finish telling Aang about Sozin's Comet and how he had to defeat the Fire Lord before it's arrival or else the world was doomed. That was a lot to lay on the shoulders of a 12 year old. So understandably, Aang was freaking out about mastering all the elements and everything else. Roku reassured him that he could do it since the Avatar had done it several times before in past lives. They smiled at each other.

"Now Aang," Roku said. "There is one more thing we must do before we go our separate ways for the time being."

"What's that?," questioned the young air bender. His tone was curious, even though he was still worried about mastering all the elements in such a short time when it usually took YEARS for the Avatar to master them all.

From out of the long and baggy sleeves of his rob, Roku pulled out a simple box. He held it out in his palms for Aang to take. But from the way Roku looked at the box, showed the child just how how important it was.

Turning his attention towards the item, Aang observed the wooden box and realized it wasn't so simple as he first thought. It was a rectangle about 6 inches long, 4 inches wide, and an inch thick. There was an intricate design on the top of the box with a small border framing it. In each corner was the symbol of each nation in a circle. Water was on the top left. Earth was on the top right. Air (Aang felt pain looking at his nation's symbol since he was the last air nomad) was on the bottom right. And Fire (a small bit of anger flared in the young Avatar because THEY were the reason his people were gone) was on the bottom left. Aang became confused at the symbol that was at the center of the picture. He didn't know what it was since Aang had never seen letters like these before. No one currently ALIVE had ever seen it or spoken the language it was connected to for a very long time. But if someone who was familiar with the language saw it, they would have realized that it looked like a "D" wrapped around a "P". These five symbols were all connected by gears that were in the rough shape of all the nations. The surface of the design and the rest of the box were smooth. It didn't look like it was carved by human hand, it was too perfect. Instead, it almost seemed like the box had been grown into having the design and shape it currently had.

Aang thought that the box was very pretty even though the mystery symbol in the center confused him.

But just looking at the box, caused a warm feeling in the center of Aang's chest. He felt like he could understand why the box was so important, even without knowing anything about it or what was held inside. This was caused by a feeling in his gut.

The two Avatars just stood there, looking at the box. Any one else would have wondered what was so interesting about the thing. Yes, the design on the top was breath taking, but that was it. The box didn't seem as amazing as the two Avatars were making it out to be. A person entering the room would find the fact that two Avatars were talking to each other was so much more amazing than a simple wooden box.

After a few moments, Aang finally (though incredibly slowly) took the box from Roku. Once in his hands, Aang held the thing gently, but with a steady hand. He treated the box as if it was made of glass and would shatter if it fall or was even held wrong. Not knowing why, Aang just felt like he HAD to act this way. It was like the box was connected to his heart. So if it broke, his heart would be shattered along with it.

The small monk stared at the box as he asked "What is it?" After a moment, he was able to tear his eyes away from the box and look at Roku. "And what is inside?"

"I do not know what is inside the box Aang." That was in fact a huge lie. But you couldn't tell that from Roku's face or voice. It did pain the past Avatar not to tell Aang. All the past avatars knew that information. It was sort of an unwritten rule that the living Avatar could not be told what was inside the box. They could only be told by Raava and the previous Avatar incarnation once they passed on. A lot of them had cried when they found out what the box held. Some reacted violently. Others didn't talk to anyone for a long time as they came to terms with what they were told. Though all their reactions were different, they all felt great sadness at learning the information. Once they were told what the contains were, it was like a piece of them that they didn't know about was awoken.

None of them knew why it was this way and it pained them. Though since it was Raava's rule, they didn't fight her. She didn't explain or want to talk about it to anyone except for Wan, but they knew the situation greatly pained the great spirit.

That was part of the reason why Aang felt so connected to the box. The feelings of the past Avatars were bleeding through and into Aang. The other cause was Raava and how she was connected to and felt towards the contains of that little box.

Though Aang wouldn't know any of this until after his time on earth was over.

Though that information would have been very useful in avoiding ALOT of awkward situations in the future for Aang.

"But what I do know is that this box is very important and you must protect it . . . Just as the Avatars before you have." Roku's voice, while still kind, held a serious tone that told Aang something bad would happen if something happened to this box. "Under no circumstance is ANYONE to open the box." He intensely stared into Aang's eyes. "Do you understand?"

Shocked at Roku's fierceness, Aang nodded his head. Calming himself down, he asked "Since this is so important, why don't I leave it here?" He didn't explain his reasoning since Roku would already know why he suggested that. Aang didn't really have a place to put something as important as this. He and his friends were traveling around the world (heading towards the north pole with many pit stops), visiting different places and trying to stay away from the Fire Nation troops . . . though failing almost every time and stumbled right into a huge mess. They also had a fire bending exiled prince hunting them that was determined to capture the Avatar at any price.

"After today, I believe the box will no long be safe here from the Fire Sages," answered Roku. It pained him since they were of HIS sages. That wasn't the only thing. He was pained since it was his nation that threw the whole world into chaos with the war they started. And it was all his fault. If he had handled things differently, the war might never have been or become Aang's problem to deal with.

"Now." Roku's tone caused Aang to look up at him. It seemed that the monk's eyes had gone back to the box, without him noticing. "We are almost out of time." He smiled. "Let me help you save your friends and show those threatening them what the Avatar can do. . . . But only if you are ready."

Aang smiled as he tucked the box into his shirt, where it would be safe. . . . and coincidentally close to his heart.

The air monk closed his eyes as Roku faded away. Suddenly, Aang opened his eyes as he had entered the Avatar state. He then spoke, but it was his and Roku's voices that came out of his mouth. "I'm ready."

=================================Time Skip=================================

The next day, Sokka, Katara, Aang and Momo were flying along on Appa. Sokka and Katara were worried about Aang. Sitting with his knees to his chest, the monk had been staring at a box all day. He wasn't so absorbed in the box that he wouldn't talk to them, but even as he spoke and replied to them, Aang continued to look at the thing. He wouldn't even take a break to play with Momo and the lemur was clearly dieing for the monk's attention. It was weirding Sokka out and making Katara very concerned.

Before Katara could move over and gently ask the monk about the box, Sokka brought the topic up in his typical way.

"So Aang," the young water tribe warrior said from his spot on Appa head, where he was steering the beast. He looked over his shoulder at the monk. "What's up with that stupid hunk of wood?"

"Sokka!" Katara said in a scolding and scandalous tone. She too was wondering the same thing, but unlike her brother, the water bender in training had decided to try to get the info with kindness. " _It is easier to catch spiderflies with honey than with vinegar._ "

"This is an important item that Avatar Roku gave me," Aang said defensively. He even went as far as to hold the box protectively to his chest as he shot a glare at Sokka. "It is the Avatar's," he gestured at himself with one hand, "to keep this box," his hold on the box tightened, pressing it tighter to his chest, "safe."

Seeing the monk's reaction, Sokka held up his hands in surrender, releasing Appa's reins. Not that it affected their flight pattern. The sky bison was well trained and would fly straight until directed otherwise . . or something caused him to change course.

Katara moved over and placed a hand on Aang's shoulder, getting him to stop glaring at her brother and to look at her. "It's okay Aang. I know how important that box is." She really didn't, but Katara assumed the box was since he got it during his visit with Roku. She looked at the box and said "It's beautiful."

"I know," Aang said. He was greatly calmed by her touch. " _But not as pretty as you are._ " He wished he could say that, but the monk was too nervous and shy to do that. He wasn't really used to talking to girls.

"Why don't you tell us about it, so that thick headed and jerky Sokka," that got an indignant shout from her brother, "can understand." " _And so I can too._ "

"Well," Aang said as he relaxed his hold on the box and turned his eyes back towards it. He held it out so Katara could get a good look at it. "Roku said that the past Avatars have kept this safe since it is so important."

Sokka and Katara waited for him to continue and give them more information. But when Aang didn't, they became confused.

"Why?," asked Sokka bluntly. He got up from Appa's head and moved towards the others, so he too could look at the box. Sokka didn't admit, since it wasn't a manly thing to say, but he too thought it was a very pretty box.

Suddenly and without warning, Sokka reached out and pluck the box out of Aang's hands. "What's so important about this thing?" It wasn't clear if Sokka was asking Aang or just thinking out loud. He turned it over and around in his hands, getting a good look at it from all sides. Looking closely (almost to the point that his eye was touching the wood) at the line that separated the lid from the rest of the box, Sokka asked "What's inside of this thing?"

"HEY!" Aang shot up and moved towards the older boy. "Give that back." Aang tried to get his hands on the box, but since Sokka was bigger and taller, it wasn't so easy. The monk could have easily used his bending to get it, but he didn't want to hurt his friend or risk damaging the box.

"Only when you answer me," teased the older boy. Sokka was only teasing in the normal way boys poke fun at each other. The problem being that Sokka was oblivious to how much Aang was getting upset over this.

Calming himself before air bender did something he might regret, Aang figured he would simply answer Sokka since that was the quickest and easiest way to get the box back without a fight. It was the air bender way of doing things. "I don't actually know. Roku didn't say what was inside."

"You don't know?," Sokka asked with an opened mouth and a shocked tone. When Aang nodded his head, Sokka looked back at the box in his hands. "Lets open it." He then tried to do just that, straining his muscles as hard as he could, but the lid wouldn't budge an inch.

"No." Aang desperately tried to get the box back, but Sokka was determined and dodged his grabbing hands. "Roku said the box is not to be opened by anyone." The Water Tribe boy was keeping the monk away with one hand on his chest while Aang tried to push himself forward, pass Sokka's hand. Aangs arms were stretched out as far as they could go, but it wasn't enough to reach the box.

Sokka just looked at Aang for a moment before going back to trying to open it. He grunted and groaned with his effort of trying to open the box and blocking Aang, but the lid still wouldn't come off. "What is it going to take to get this thing open."

Giving a big push, Sokka put a bit of distance between himself and Aang. He then pulled out his dagger, a weapon made from the jawbone of arctic wolf. It had four of the wolf's teen remain on it, proving it was from a real animal bone. Sokka eyed the box for a moment before shoving the tip of the blade into the line that separated the lid from the rest of the box. But since the box was so tightly closed, the blade damaged the the wood a bit, though not enough to open the thing.

Aang was shocked frozen in place, just watching as Sokka twisted the blade back and forth, further damaging the box . . .though still not opening it much to the warrior's growing frustration. The monk felt a bad thump in his heart the moment the blade hit the box. His mouth opened, but no sound came out.

Seeing Aang's reaction, Katara moved to her brother and grabbed onto the box. But Sokka wouldn't let go. The siblings began a tag-a-war over the thing.

"Give that back to Aang. It's important to him." Grunting, Katara pulled the box towards her, trying to get it from Sokka.

"No." Sokka pulled it toward himself, but his sister wouldn't let go. "There could be a . .," he whined as he twisted the box, ". . . secret super powerful avatar weapon thingy in here that could help us."

"Really?," Katara asked exasperated at her brother's childishness and obsession over weapons. "If whatever is in there . .," she groaned at a partially violent pull from her brother, ". . it probably isn't a weapon . ." She jerked the box, unsuccessfully trying to get it out of Sokka's hands. "The Avatar is all about peace and balance so why would he have a "secret-super-powerful-avatar-weapon-thingy" in a box." She had used a mocking tone when throwing Sokka's own words back at him. "Plus Avatar Roku said NOT," she gave a vicious tuck, almost making both of them fall, "to open the box and we should listen to him."

Though each Water Tribe sibling tried, they couldn't get the other to release the box. Their fighting eventually got more intense, to the point that Aang feared that they would fall off Appa in their focus on the box. Deciding to act, Aang air bended a small gust of wind at the box. He was hoping to surprise his friends, making their grips loosen enough that his small little wind twister could relieve them of the box and return it to him.

But Aang didn't take into account just how determined Sokka was to get inside the box and find out what mysterious thing was held inside. The result was, Katara released the box (since she WAS surprised) and Sokka quickly pulling it towards himself. The boy used too much force, causing his body to stumble backwards.

"Sokka, watch out!"

But the warning was delivered too late. Sokka tripped on the edge of Appa's saddle and fell off the bison. As he was going over, the box was sent flying out of his hands and through the air, going over the opposite edge that Sokka did.

"SOKKA!," Katara screamed as, to her eyes, her brother fell in slow motion. A single tear left her eye since, from their height, there would be no surviving a collision with the ground.

Aang acted quickly and, with staff in hand, jumped over the edge right after his friend and the box. He didn't open his glider right away since he had to gain speed to catch up with them.

But there was a problem.

The air monk wouldn't be able to get both the box and Sokka before they hit the ground. The distance between them had grown too great to cover before the quickly approaching ground painfully caught them.

"AANG!" screamed Sokka, seeing the monk looking between him and the box. He KNEW (or at least told himself) that his friend would choose him over the box, but it was disconcerting that Aang was even stopping to consider it and hadn't helped him yet. "I don't mean to hurry you, but . . . THE GROUND IS GOING TO BE HERE ANY MOMENT NOW." Sokka gestured towards the ground, before just starting to wave his arms around crazily in his worry and fear. "AND I REALLY DON'T WANT TO MAKE CLOSE FRIENDS WITH THE GROUND. I LIKE THE WAY MY BODY IS RIGHT NOW AND DONT WANT THAT TO CHANGE."

Reaching his decision, Aang quickly grabbed his hysterically screaming friend. The monk then opened his staff before helping Sokka to get a hold of his glider. They both watched silently as the box headed for the ground before disappearing in the tree tops, where it and whatever it held inside would surely smash to pieces.

" _Just another thing I failed to do as the Avatar,_ " Aang thought depressingly.

"Well, on the bright side," Sokka said cheerfully, getting the monk's attention, "when the box breaks we will find out what was inside."

Shooting a glare at him, Aang dryly said "I can still drop you, you know." His tone told Sokka he wasn't happy.

" _And I can't really tell if he is joking or not,_ " thought the Southern Water Tribe boy.

Deciding to get a little more pay back, Aang said "And your dagger was still connected to the box when it went over." The monk knew it was petty, but he couldn't help it. Even though he was a monk, Aang was still a child and that box was important to him. The box wasn't even in his possession for more than 24 hours and it was already destroyed.

A stunned look came to Sokka's face. He had forgotten about his dagger in his fear over the close embrace with death. That dagger was made with his dad from a wolf they had hunted together. So it was important to him.

Katara flew Appa to them and the two boys climbed on to his saddle. "I'm so glad you guys are alright." She rushed forward and gave Sokka a quick hug, before giving Aang one too.

The monk didn't reply to her words or hug, causing Katara to release him.

Aang just stood there for a moment, staring downward. "Lets go find the remains of the box." Katara didn't need to ask what happened since from his sad tone and slumped shoulders, she could figure things out. He switched spots with Katara since he had seen where the box was headed and would be able to get them near to where it might have landed.

"And more importantly my dagger," Sokka said.

Katara just looked at her brother for a moment, not believing how uncaring and insensitive he could be. " _But I CAN believe it._ " She moved over to him and slapped her brother upside the head, HARD.

"Ow," whined Sokka as he rubbed his head. "That hurt. What was that for?"

"Good! I'm glad it hurt," Katara strongly said, making Sokka cower away from his scary little sister. Though she was an angle most of the time, Katara could be a demon when she was angry. "And it was for being your unthoughtful, uncaring, and insensitive self."

Katara walked off before Sokka could say anything. Climbing back onto Appa's head, she sat herself next to the sad monk. Placing a gentle hand on Aang's shoulder, Katara said "It's okay. I'm sure Roku will understand what happened."

After a few moments of silence, Aang said "I'm not sure of that Katara. . . . ." The monk looked sadly towards the grown. "Roku was very serious about protecting that box." A sad sign escaped him. "I just . . . feel like I failed." " _Again._ " He couldn't help thinking about how he ran away from his responsibility as the Avatar. " _If I hadn't, maybe this war would never had started in the first place._ "

"You didn't," Katara said gentle as she gave the monk a hug. " _If anything, Sokka did._ " Pulling back, she saw that this time her hug helped him to feel better. "Sometimes things just happen Aang and you can't stop them from happening . . . . You can't live in the past. You have to deal with the here and now. . . . . And if Roku is that upset about this," she gained a serious tone, "he is just going to have to deal with it." Her voice then gained a joking tone. "If that doesn't work, we can always sacrifice Sokka to appease Roku's anger."

Aang smiled and released a small laugh at that.

"Hey, you can't do that," Sokka said with a huff as he crossed his arms. "Besides . . . sacrifices are always girls."

"Well," Aang said with a thinking tone as he tapped his chin. Just from his tone, one could tell his mood was lightening up. "We could always dress you up as one. You did look pretty girly in that Kyoshi Warrior outfit."

"Hey." A blush came to Sokka's face. "We all swore never to speak about that again."

Aang and Katara look at each other and start giggling.

"We never agree to that," said Katara, looking back over at Sokka. There was a particularly evil and unmerciful look in her eyes. "I think it is a great idea Aang . . ." A smile that sent chills down Sokka's spine came to her face. " . . . I have always wanted a big sister." That got Sokka REALLY blushing and he covered his face in embarrassment, causing the other two to burst out laughing.

Looking back at Aang, Katara said "I'm glad to see you happy again."

"Yeah," said Aang. his positive attitude was back in full force. "And who knows. Maybe we will find the box intact and undamaged." He pulled on Appa's reins. "Appa. Yip yip."

Katara didn't have the heart to burst his happy bubble by telling him that the box was most likely in a million pieces right now.

What none of them knew was that what they were going to find would be very shocking, nothing any of them were expecting, and would change the course of their journey in unexpected ways.


	2. The Mystery Inside

Author Notes: I am working on this since I honestly can't decide what to work on (struggling with the others). I felt like watching The Last Airbender and working on a fanfiction so I decided to work on this. That is also why this is kind of a shorter story than usual. I'm struggling with balancing work, college, chores, and fun time. I honestly feel like crying. . . . . Okay before anyone says anything, I have changed Danny's character a little. Not much in actual appearance, but more like in how others perceive him. You will see what I mean when you read. I just felt like adding this thing and I know some people won't like it. Sorry. I just thought it would be a funny thing to do. ONE more thing. I have posted a poll asking what you people want me to work on since I can't decided what to work on. Please vote. As of 3/15/18 at 3:19pm, 90 people have voted. I messaged 341 people. So again, please vote.

IlikeHotDogs: Thanks. I know EXACTLY who I am pairing Danny with. . . But I'm not telling. Though I will say that she is one of my favorite characters in the show.

HateReborn27: Not happening. I love the Sokka-man. He is like one of the best characters. Even though he makes me cringe sometimes.

Green223: Understandable

Drakonslayer21: That's cool.

Guest chapter 1 . Jan 3: Not the place to be asking this. But I am looking into updating that.

Tenuem: How deep is your hole and have you drowned in your tears yet?

Zapster45: Here it is.

* * *

Spoken Words = "I want to be a great and powerful ninja! To walk in the footsteps of the legendary kunoichi, Tsunade!"

Thoughts = " _Amazing… The brilliance of the blade… the design. They're all beautiful! I want to take them all home!_ "

Other Languages = "I no longer wish to be like Lady Tsunade anymore. But I haven't given up my dream to become a legendary kunoichi."

* * *

The Avatar's Phantom Chapter 2: The Mystery Inside

============================30 to 45 Minutes Later============================

Landing Appa, the gang headed in the direction that Aang predicted that the box would have landed. But the monk couldn't be exact since the forest's tree-branches would have altered the box's trajectory. That is why it took so long to find anything. The thing is Aang had a feeling that told him they WOULD find something and it guided him. Pulled him along as if someone was silently whispering directions in his ear. The Avatar followed this feeling, not caring if Sokka or Katara were behind him or not.

Though the two siblings were following their friend since that is what friends did.

Eventually they did find something of huge interest, but it wasn't the box or Sokka's dagger.

Laying on the ground was an unconscious young girl, laying on her side. Her black hair and pale skin suggested that she was of Fire Nation decent. She looked a little older than the avatar. Aang and Sokka, being boys, couldn't help noticing that she had no feminine chest assets to speak of. Her condition was terrible. Her hair was long, about the same length as Katara's, and full of unidentifiable gross chunks of sludge. The stuff was mostly brownish-red with patches that looked dark green. It looked like she hadn't bathed in a long time. She was wearing basically a brown sack with a rope around her waist. It reminded them of the "clothes" that Katara had to wear when she went into the Fire Nation prison to save Haru. The difference being that the girl's rags were so much more frayed and ragged. The clothes left little to the imagination, showing her underweight body but just barely covered all of her intimate places.

Even with all of this, there was an unearthly loveliness to this unknown girl.

If finding a passed out beautiful girl in a horrible condition wasn't shocking enough, she was curled around a large egg. The egg was about the size of one laid by a platypus bear.

Aang just stared at the girl. His focus on her was so intense that nothing else mattered to him at the moment. He had tunnel vision. And the only thing at the end of that tunnel was the mystery girl. It was like she was surrounded by darkness with a shot light over her. Simply put, that girl was the only thing on his radar. Aang didn't know why, but he got the impression that there was more to her than what she seemed. There was this special energy around her that reminded Aang of his encounters with spirits.

And something deep inside of his soul told the monk that this person was somehow VERY important to him.

"We have to help her," Katara said, being the first one to finder her voice. Aang was shaken out of his thoughts and was quick to agree with Katara. Together, they moved to help the mystery girl.

But they were stopped by Sokka, who slid in from the side and stood in front of them with his arms spread out wide. The warrior stood there, blocking their path. "Wait!" They looked surprised at him. "We can't just help this girl." He gestured down at her. "She is obviously from the Fire Nation."

"So?," question Aang very confused about why they weren't already helping the person clearly in need of aid. " _Is it JUST because of her nationality?_ " A frown came to his face. " _That's stupid._ "

"So," Sokka said in a patronizing and incredulous tone as he just looked at the monk. "The fire nation is the enemy. SHE," he pointed at the unconscious girl, "is part of fire nation. Just do the math." Seeing the looks on the others' faces, Sokka realized he sounded really raciest. " Wait." He held up his hands. "This isn't about where she is from." The others didn't look like they believed him. "I just . ." His eyebrows tensed. "My gut is telling me," he looked at the girl, "there is something suspicious about this situation and weird about her. . ." Sokka shook his head as if that could get ride of the feeling he was having. "All I'm trying to say is I think this could be a trap set up to get us."

Before Katara could ask if Sokka was brain damaged, Aang said "I don't care." He moved past the young warrior and Katara followed him. With his back towards Sokka, Aang walked towards the girl. "This girl needs our help and I am not going to deny her it because she MIGHT be Fire Nation or this COULD be a trap or whatever you are trying to say. . . . ." He turned his head to look back at Sokka and said "Giving help to someone in need is the right thing to do."

Sokka could only watch on as Aang and Katara went over to the girl and gently moved to help her. Slowly following, but keeping a safe distance away, the warrior would keep an eye on her just in case she tried something.

When Aang tapped her shoulder, she didn't move or awaken. "Hey, are you okay?" After a few more tries and getting no reply, it was proven that the girl wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. They debated the issue for a bit and decided that Katara would be the one to check her for wounds and clean her body since they just couldn't leave her covered in filth. Having a girl do it would protect her privacy and dignity.

Aang took the egg from the girl's hands. He had to pry her fingers off of it. For someone looking so unhealthy and skinny, the girl had one really strong grip. Telling Sokka to protect the egg, since he wanted to help Katara move the girl, the monk then handed it over to the water tribe warrior. Only after Sokka reluctantly promised that he would, did Aang rejoin Katara.

As the monk did that, Katara had gone to Appa and grabbed a set of her clothes. She figured that she couldn't, in her right mind, put the girl back into her filthy clothes after getting her cleaned up.

When Katara got back, Aang grabbed the girl's shoulders and rested her head on his chest as Katara took her legs. They then picked the girl up. The two benders were instantly shocked. Worry filled their minds since the girl weighted so little. It was very low . . . . even taking her size into account. She weighted so little that it would only actually take one of them to pick her up. After passing concerned looks to each other, Katara and Aang quickly yet gently carried the girl to a nearby river. The quicker they got her treated the sooner she would be back on the long road of recovery.

What none of them saw (since two of them were busy carrying the girl and the other was keeping his suspicious eyes on her) was that once the girl was lifted up, it was revealed that there had been some of the remains of a certain box underneath the unconscious girl's body.

When they got her to the water's edge, Katara had the boys turn away so that she could undress the girl and bath her without them seeing her naked body. They did what Katara wanted without a question or hesitation since the look on her face promised EXTREME pain if she caught them peeking.

Once she was sure that the boys won't look, the water-bender turned her focus to the girl. Removing the sack clothes from the girl's shoulders, Katara was shocked by the amount of scars she saw on the girl's flesh. The more of the fabric that was removed, the more scarred skin was revealed. The scars ranged from small cuts to monstrous things that Katara couldn't even begin to imagine what caused them. The strange thing was, the marks didn't decrease the girl's beauty. In fact, in a strange way, they actually increased it. She was almost like a porcelain doll that seemed like it could be broken from even the gentlest of touches.

When the girl's chest was totally revealed, a small part of Katara couldn't help feeling bad for the girl. " _She has no breasts to speak of. I think she hasn't even entered puberty yet they are so small._ " When the sack was completely removed, Katara started blushing until her face was completely red. " _So much for protecting dignity and privacy._ " Embarrassed beyond anything she had experienced in life so far, she quickly made sure there were no wounds. Not seeing any, Katara quickly cleaned and redressed her patient in her clothes before turning away from the naked body.

"Uh . .guys," Katara said as she stood up and quickly went over to her friends. "There is a problem."

"What's wrong?," Aang immediately asked as he looked toward the girl. "Is something wrong with her? Is . . she going to make it?" He started to chew on his nails. The monk was just so worried. He didn't know why he was when he didn't even know who this girl was. But something told him this person was special and he should be worried about their well being. It was like he had a personal stake in the matter . . . . almost like this girl was a friend or . . . . a sister.

With her face still very red, Katara said "No. There were no wounds. . . and nothing wrong . . per se. . . " Putting a hand to her cheek, she turned away from the two boys. Her blush went up in tone a little.

"Well," Sokka said in a suspicious tone. "If there are no wounds, then what is the problem?" He would have grabbed a weapon . . . if he hadn't had an egg occupying his hands.

Aang and Sokka watched as Katara's blush intensified even more when it didn't seem like that should have be possible. "The problems is . . . " She turned back to them. ". . . It seems the girl we found . . . is really a . . boy." " _. . And I got a good look at his junk. . . . and it was my first time seeing someone unrelated to me naked. . . or touching them._ " She couldn't help the next stray though from entering her head. " _For someone so feminine and pretty looking, he sure was big . . . down there._ " Her blush was so large, she felt like she was going to pass out.

The two boys just stared at her for a moment, their brains not really understanding what was said to them.

It took a moment, but Sokka's brain was able to process what his sister said and when it did, he shouted "Wwwwhat!?." His voice was full of disbelief and shock. His grip on the egg lessened and the delicate thing slipped from his hands. It would have smashed against the ground if Aang hadn't caught it, thanks to his quick reflexes. The monk glared at him for almost killing the defenseless creature growing inside the egg. But Sokka payed Aang and the egg no attention at all. "How can that," he gestured in the unconscious person's direction, "GIRL.. .," his tone was accusative, almost like he was blaming Katara and/or the girl of a crime, "not be a girl?. . ." His voice then turned quiet. "She is so pretty." Sokka blushed as he said the last thing.

The others agreed with him. The person they found, even thought clearly unhealthy and in a bad condition, was beautiful. They couldn't imagine what the boy would look like if he was healthy.

Looking at the BOY now dressed in Katara's clothes (they weren't going to change them since the female water-bender was the only one to bring an extra pair) they all had the similar thought. " _Breath taking._ " Even with just a short cleaning and new clothes, the boy's looks had jumped up in beauty. It was actually very confusing to look at him.

" _I actually am a bit jealous of his looks,_ " thought Katara. " _He is so good looking without TRYING._ "

" _I STILL can't tell if they are a boy or a girl even though I know the truth,_ " Aang thought as he looked at the unconscious person.

" _I wonder if finding him kind of attractive makes me gay,_ " idly thought Sokka. " _No. I'm not attracted to a guy but to a person who looks like a very pretty girl._ "

Seeing that they didn't fully believe her, Katara said "I saw his whole. . boyness, . with my very own eyes . . . but if you need proof." She gestured in the boy's direction. "Go ahead and check for yourself." Katara wouldn't actually let them do it since she had already disturbed the boy's privacy enough for today. " _But I was helping him . . so it is okay,_ " she reassured herself. She had only finished cleaning and redressing the boy since she had already started. Plus she figured that the boys wouldn't be mature enough to do it themselves. " _I won't let them check if he has a penis . . ._ " She blushed at just thinking the word, remembering that she had actually seen it for herself. " _. . . just to make sure for themselves._ "

With a shake of his head, Sokka held his hands up in surrender. "No thanks." There was no way he wanted to look at someone's genitals just to check their gender . . . specially if that meant risking looking at another boy's crotch. "I believe you." " _But still. . ._ " He sent a look at the unconscious boy. " _How can a boy be so girly without actually doing anything?_ "

Katara huffed since she knew that her brother's real reason for not looking. . . . Embarrassment . . A feeling she herself was currently still feeling. " _I understand and wish I hadn't looked myself._ "

"So," Aang said, getting the others out of their thoughts and looking at him. "What do we do now?" He was hugging the egg to his chest with an unsure look on his face.

After talking about it, with many complaints from Sokka, they decided that they would take the boy back to Appa so he could rest and be safe. They would then go back to where they found him to see if there were any hints about what happened to him to be found . . . or proof that he was up to no good in Sokka's option. So Katara carried him bridle style back to the sky bison since Aang was carrying the egg and Sokka didn't want ANYTHING to do with the boy or his egg. The girl had no problem lifting him since the black haired pretty boy was so worryingly light.

When they got back to Appa, Katara gently placed the boy on the bison's saddle. Aang followed her and since he wanted his hands free, the monk placed the egg next to the boy. To their surprise, the egg was quickly grabbed by the unconscious boy's hands and held close to his chest. They waited for a moment to see if he would wake up or do anything else, but he didn't.

Leaving, the three children went back to where they found the boy. As they looked around, Katara and Aang not really knowing what they were looking for, Sokka entered "detective" mode. He even had a special hat with a magnifying glass attached to it to help him investigate and a dragon shaped bubble pipe. Using his hat's special attachment, Sokka closely examining everything. The detective even went so far as to pick up some dirt and examine it. For a moment, he rub it between his forefinger and thumb as he blew bubbles from his pipe. He continued to look at the dirt before suddenly tasting it. "Yes." The others looked at him and wondered why he did that. "This tastes exactly like ordinary dirt." They promptly realized Sokka was being stupid.

Though he was being an idiot, Sokka was the only one to notice the shards of wood on the ground. Then something shiny caught his eye. To his great joy, he saw his blade stuck in a tree branch up above. Releasing a squeal, Sokka quickly climbed up the tree and on to the branch like a wild hog monkey. Once the blade was retrieved, he gave it a kiss on its unsharp edge like a long lost lover. After his heart warming reunion, Sokka put his blade away. He then turned his attention back to the wood shards. Picking up a piece of the wood, Sokka looked closely at it using the magnifying glass on his hat. Recognizing something, he moved the magnifying glass out of the way, picked up more pieces and arranged them so they fit together. Looking at them, he blow a few bubbles from his pipe in thought. As Sokka was looking up in thought, he saw that some of the branches above were broken. Sokka hadn't noticed before, when he was actually up in the tree, since he was too focused on his blade at the time.

"Hey guys!," Sokka shouted. "You might want to see this." He was looking intensely at the carefully arranged pieces of wood. "I think I know what happened here. . ." The next part was spoken to himself, but loud enough that the others could hear him. "But it's not possible."

Aang and Katara went over to Sokka. They looked down at what he had arranged and gasped.

On the ground was a large chunk of the box's lid. They could see the beautiful design even though over half of it was missing or damaged.

The two benders looked at Sokka as he continued to look at the damaged box lid.

"What do you think happened Sokka?," asked Aang.

"I think the box fell through from there." Sokka pointed at the broken tree branches above them. You could almost see a path made from something falling and hitting branches. "You can tell from the broken and bent branches. . . . The box then landed here." He pressed his hand against an indent in the ground . . . which would have been right under where the unconscious boy had been laying. "The box then seems to have exploded. . . almost like something inside of it rapidly enlarged until the box couldn't handle it anymore. . . Then BOOM." He gestured outward with his hands, simulating an explosion. ". . . There are pieces of the box," he pointed at a wood shard that was a good six feet away from the impact point, "all over the place."

"What are you saying exactly?," Katara asked. She and Aang were confused about what Sokka was trying to say.

"I think . ." Sokka looked pained by what he was about to say. Looking off to the side, he sighed before saying "I hate to say it and my self for even considering it . . . since it is IMPOSSIBLE . . . but . . I think that boy somehow came OUT of Aang's secret Avatar box."

"Really?" Katara was surprised that Sokka was even suggesting this. He was all about everything having a logical scientific explanation, refusing to believe that anything could have a supernatural cause. And this was even after Sokka was KIDNAPPED by a spirit and taken to their realm. " _What will it take him to believe in the supernatural?. . . We are with the AVATAR .. . the spiritual bridge between the two worlds . . . of all people. How much more spiritual can you get than that?_ "

Holding up his hands defensively, Sokka said "I know, I know." He knew what they were thinking. "Science and logic loving me," he gestured at himself with a surprised look on his face, "suggesting a supernatural cause to something." His shoulders slumped in defeat as he shook his head. "I don't see any other explanation that could make even a little sense."

"Well," Katara said, trying to find another more likely explanation. "Couldn't the box have just happened to . . . I don't know," she twirled her hand in the air, "hit this guy in the head and shattered to pieces that way?" Her tone showed that she was finding her own words hard to believe.

"That's not really likely." Sokka shook his head. "Didn't you say he had no wounds?" Getting a nod from his sister, Sokka continued speaking. "If he got hit with the box, he DEFENENTY would have had a serious wound to the head. . . and that's not the only thing." He rubbed his chin in thought. "How do you guys explain that guy laying on top of the remains of Aang's Avatar box?" He didn't wait for a reply. "If the box HAD hit him, it would have most like shattered and the remains would have been on top of him, not underneath his body . . . . . Plus this is Avatar business . . . so a supernatural cause isn't off the table, in fact it's MORE likely to happen . . . ." He looked at the monk. "Weird and crazy stuff always happens when Aang is involved."

"That boy having been inside the box makes no sense though Sokka." Aang decided to ignore Sokka's comment about him and weird stuff. "Why would the past Avatars keep someone locked away in a box? . . . To do that . . .It's just wrong." It pained him to think that he (or specifically his past lives) would do that to someone. "To steal someone's freed like that is . . . horrible." He shut his eyes in emotion pain. The reason he was feeling so strongly over this was partly because the past Avatar's feelings were bleeding into him. Aang also hated to think he would have been able to steal anyone's freedom from them . . . even if it was a past life that did it. He was moments away from his eyes glowing and unleashing the power of the Avatar.

"Aang." Her tone was gentle as Katara placed a calming hand on the monk's shoulder. She didn't know it, but her calming presence and caring gesture had stopped him from entering the Avatar State. "If Sokka is right . . ." She looked the monk in the eyes. "And that is a big IF . . . Roku said he didn't know what was in the box. . . . So even if that boy was in the box, the Avatar . . . and more importantly, YOU never intentionally kept him in there."

"You're right," Aang said, feeling a bit better. "But I can't help feeling that Sokka is right about that guy being in the box." The siblings looked at him, wondering why the monk believed Sokka's crazy theory. Seeing this, Aang shrugged helplessly as he nervously scratched the back of his head. "I don't know why . . . I just . . Have a feeling? . . . Call it an Avatar thing." That excuse usually bought him a lot of leeway with his friends.

"Well does your Avatar sense thing tell you if this guy is good or bad?," asked Sokka. "Becouse if I'm RIGHT." He sent a pointed look at his sister since Aang had said he believed him. "There is probably a reason why that GUY," he gestured in the direction of Appa, who had the boy in his saddle, "was in that box. . . . . and it most likely isn't a GOOD reason . . . . He probably did something bad to be locked in there." Looking in the direction of Appa, Sokka said "I say we leave him here and fly off before he causes us trouble."

"NO," Aang said strongly, shocking Katara and Sokka from his intensity. Smiling shyly, the monk continued speaking in a calmer tone. "I . . uh . . I mean that would be the wrong thing to do. Something could happen to him. . . like . . um . . ." One could tell from his tone that he was trying to grasp an idea that made sense. "A wild animal could just walk up and start eating him or something."

Getting over the usually calm monk's angry outburst, Katara said "Aang is right. We can't just leave him here, he would be defensive." She then decided to play Sokka's warrior pride against him. "But if your too scared of an unconscious boy . . ." She didn't even need to finish since Sokka took the bait.

"I am NOT afraid," Sokka shouted as he stomped his foot.

"Then prove it." Katara smirked, but made sure Sokka couldn't see it. " _He can really be predictable at times._ " She felt like laughing, but that would give her plan away.

"FINE." Sokka crossed his arms and turned his back to the two benders. "The guy can stay. . . . But at the first sign of trouble . . . He GOES."

"Sure," Katara said smiling.

"Sounds good to me." Aang got what Katara did and smiled too. " _She's good._ "

Aang and Katara then casually walked by Sokka, the monk on his right and his sister on the left. They didn't look back and smiled as they hurried back to Appa. Sokka just stood there for a moment, as it slowly dawned on him what just happened and how he just got played.

For a moment, he just stood there with his mouth hanging open.

"HEY," Sokka shouted before finally following after his friends.

When the gang got back and climbed back onto Appa, they saw that the boy still hadn't awaken while they were gone, though he had moved. His body was on its side and curled protectively around the egg.

They stood there for a moment and looked at the mystery boy before they made sure everything was ready to go.

With everything settled, the sky bison was ready to fly. Sokka was steering, since the other two were more concerned about the unconscious boy. " _I'm keeping my eye on you box boy,_ " Sokka thought before with a "Yip Yip", he had Appa take to the sky.

==================================Later==================================

The gang was flying high in the sky on Appa. After making sure the mystery teen was okay and wasn't going to fall off the bison, Aang and Katara watched him for a while. The two had to keep Momo from disturbing the boy. For some reason the lemur really wanted to be near him and kept on trying to sit on the unconscious boy's head. Eventually, Aang had to send Momo to hang out with Sokka to leave the boy alone.

When it became clear that the boy wasn't going to be awakening anytime soon, the two turned away from him and looked out into the distance.

It was silent as they all thought about what they would do now. Questions went through all their heads. Did the unconscious boy really come out of that box? If so, then why was he in there? What was the Avatar's connection to the box and this pretty boy? And the most important question . . . .

What were they going to do with this guy when he awoken?

They had a lot less time to answer that last question than they thought they did.

A grown broke the silence, catching everyone's attentions. At first they thought it was Appa's stomachs, but quickly dismissed the idea since the sound was too human to be the bison. Slowly, they turned around and looked at their unconscious guest . . . who was no long out cold.

Sitting up while still clutching the egg to his chest with one arm, the boy lazily stretched his free arm over his head and released a yawn. He took a moment to rub his eyes with the back of his hand. Slowly he opened his eyes, revealing that they were a bright baby blue. This made the three confused about his nationality since usually only those from the Water Tribe had eyes that color. He looked at them for a moment. His eyes were still glazed from sleep so the boy didn't actually see them for a couple of minutes. But when the sleep completely left and his mind understood what was happening around him, fear and concern entered his eyes.

Before Sokka, Katara, or Aang could say anything, the boy had gotten up and entered a battle stance. Thought he didn't look that threatening considering the condition of his body.

"Where am I? Who are you? What's going on?"

Though the three knew the boy was speaking, they couldn't understand a word he said. He was speaking in a language that none of they had ever heard of before. . . . . in fact the language hadn't been spoken or heard by anyone in a VERY long time.

Though his words weren't understood, his body language and tone spoke volumes. His voice was full of panic, confusion and fear. He was clearly terrified and didn't know what was going on. He was clutching the egg to his side protectively without realizing it. The teen looked like he would bolt at a moments notice. Looking at each of them in the eye, he assessed if they were a threat or not. He quickly dismissed the boy with a machete out by his side and the girl, believing he could take them easily. When his eyes connected with the bald kid's, something unsaid passed between them. Neither of them new what it was, but they both felt that they could trust the other.

Before Aang or Katara could try to calm him down, Sokka moved forward and raised his blade threateningly. The mystery boy knew he could take the guy, but with his mind in a panic and not knowing what was going on, he acted quickly. Raising his hand, a beam of blue energy was shot at Sokka. The beam hit his blade, covering the weapon completely in a thick layer of ice.

Aang, Sokka, and Katara were shocked and stared at the weapon. " _He is a water bender,_ " they all thought. They then turned towards the boy.

With all their eyes on him, the panicky boy fearfully took a step back.

Unfortunately, the teen was standing right by the edge of Appa's saddle when he took that step . . . and fell right off the sky bison. He released a shocked yelp as he fell backwards, but after that, there wasn't the screaming one expected to happen when someone fell from a high height and towards their deaths.

Acting quickly, Aang grabbed his staff and jumped off Appa for the second time today. As he was falling, the monk noticed that the boy wasn't screaming in fear. He didn't even look the slight bit scared at all. The boy was facing towards the ground and there was a happy look on his face. He was also still holding onto the egg. " _He clearly is enjoying this. . . .but why?_ " The mystery boy's eyes closed in pleasure. The look on his face reminded Aang of a few air benders he used to know that enjoyed the rushing air against their faces as they free fell and would close their eyes too. " _But he isn't an air bender._ " Aang felt a pang of pain since the monk was the last of the air benders. " _He doesn't know I am here to save him . . . so in his point of view, he is falling to his death._ " Fear and concern gripped Aang's heart. " _Is that it?! Does he want to die?! . Is that what he is so happy about?!_ "

Worried, Aang shouted "Hey!" The boy's eyes shot open and he looked at the monk. There was a confused expression on his face as he looked blankly at Aang. It was clear he hadn't understood what the monk had said. So Aang decided to communicate with his body language and the tone of his voice. "Please." Aang's tone was caring and full of kindness. He held out his hand towards the falling teen. "Take my hand."

The boy looked at Aang for a moment and their eyes met again. They felt that strange connection from before and the boy decided to trust the monk. Slowly the teen extended his hand towards Aang. When his hand was close enough, Aang quickly made up the rest of the distance and grabbed the boy's hand. The teen jerked back a little, but Aang didn't let go. The monk opened his glider and slowed their decent before flying back towards Appa. Aang noticed that the teen watched him fly with surprise and awe. The monk wrote it off as the usual looks he got when people saw him air bend. Aang tended to get a lot of looks just for being an air bender since everyone thought they were extinct. And that was BEFORE they found out he was the Avatar.

Flying up pass and above Appa, Aang then slowly lowered them to the bison's saddle. Once there, the boy quickly separated from the monk and stood across from Aang. Though this time he made sure he didn't fall off the saddle.

Sokka and Katara went up and stood on each side of the monk. Sokka's weapons were stowed away this time since his sister had given him a stern talking to. It had simply boiled down to her yelling at him and the warrior cowering before her might. She was so angry that he had scared the boy over the edge. She had said "How can you think that boy is a threat?! He was so scared of you that he fell of Appa!" Sokka had tried to say something in his defense about how the boy ATTACKED him with ice, but Katara wouldn't give him a chance to speak. "When Aang comes back with him, your weapons better be out of sight or I'm throwing them off Appa." Sokka fearfully hugged his boomerang to his chest and Katara saw this. "ESPECIALLY your precious boomerang." Sokka nodded his head and had done what his sister said . . . anything to keep his beloved boomerang safe.

Stepping forward, Katara said "I'm Katara," as she gestured at herself. Her voice was full of kindness. The water bender was trying to be as friendly in body language and tone as she could project. She then motioned towards the other two boys. "This is Aang." The monk smiled sheepishly and gave a small wave towards the boy he just saved. "And this is my brother Sokka."

The warrior just looked at his sister. Sokka couldn't believe what his sister was doing. "What are you doing?" His words drew Katara's and Aang's attentions to him. He didn't give Katara a chance to answer. Sokka pointed in the boy's direction. "You heard him before. He clearly can't understand what we are saying. So there is no point in . . . "

"My name is Danny."


End file.
